The present invention relates to the fields of consumer wireless communications and consumer electronic audio products. Specifically, the present invention relates to the fields of wireless telephony and AM/FM radio. More specifically, the present invention relates to the field of wireless headsets for portable electronic devices such as wireless and cellular telephones, where the headset can be used for both listening to audio programming and interfacing with a wireless or cordless telephone unit.
Wireless electronic products provide users with tremendous freedom. For example, with portable radio tuners, users can listen to their favorite music or other audio programming in their cars, while exercising or virtually anywhere. Similarly, wireless telephones allow subscribers to make and receive telephone calls from virtually any location within a service area. As a result subscribers can, for example, make use of time spent traveling to conduct telephone calls and need never waste time looking for a phone to place a call.
An emerging technology allows headphones to wirelessly receive an audio signal from an audio signal source without a wire-line connection to the audio signal source. This allows the user to move around freely within a range of the audio signal source and still enjoy the audio programming being provided through the headphones.
In another field, cordless and wireless telephony similarly allow users to make and receive telephone calls from anywhere within a range of the cordless base set or within a wireless service area. Some cordless phones also make use of a headset. For example, a headset, e.g., a pair of headphones or an ear-piece secured to or on one the user""s ears, may be wired to a cordless telephone handset to allow the wearer to hear the incoming audio signal of a phone call. A microphone mounted on the headset allows the user to speak in response and, thereby, conduct a telephone call. The same arrangement may be available with a wireless or cellular telephone handset.
The use of headsets for listening to audio programming and for conducting wireless or cordless telephone calls have now converged. In a related patent application, U.S. Ser. No. 08/950,833, filed Oct. 15, 1997 (incorporated herein by reference in its entirety), it was suggested that a single pair of headphones could be used for both enjoying audio programming from an audio signal source and conducting a cordless telephone call. However, problems remain integrating, into a single pair of headphones, the functions of providing high quality audio programming and conducting a telephone call. For example, when conducting a telephone call, the user must be provided with a microphone into which he or she can speak.
In light of these difficulties, consumers are typically presented with mutually exclusive sets of portable electronic wireless products. Users that want the functionality of an AM/FM tuner and a wireless phone must buy two separate products, and the user must manage which of these products is currently active. For example, when listening to an FM radio station with a headset connected to an AM/FM radio tuner and a telephone call is received, the user must remove the headset and bring the telephone unit up to his or her ear and mouth to conduct the phone call conversation. Similarly, if a user has finished a phone call and wants to listen to music or other audio programming, he or she must put away the telephone unit and place the headset for the radio tuner on his or her head.
Consequently, there is a need in the art for a system and method of more conveniently providing users with the functionality of both a radio tuner and a wireless telephone unit without requiring user effort to manage and switch between two entirely separate devices.
It is an object of the present invention to meet the above-described needs and others. Specifically, it is an object of the present invention to provide a system and method of more conveniently providing users with the functionality of both a radio tuner and a wireless telephone unit. Additionally, it is a further object of the present invention to provide such a system without requiring that the user manage and switch between the use of two entirely separate devices.
Additional objects, advantages and novel features of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows or may be learned by those skilled in the art through reading these materials or practicing the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be achieved through the means recited in the attached claims.
The present invention may be described as an integrated commercial radio receiver and wireless telephone device. The invention may be embodied as a phone unit including a broadband AM/FM radio signal receiver; a wireless telephone transceiver for communicating with a wireless telephone system; and a transmitter for selectively transmitting a commercial radio signal from the radio signal receiver or an incoming audio signal of a wireless telephone call to a headset unit. Preferably, the transmitter is a wireless FM radio transmitter.
The headset unit preferably includes a microphone for transducing spoken utterances of a user as an outgoing audio signal of the wireless telephone call; and a transceiver for transmitting the outgoing audio signal to the wireless telephone transceiver for transmission to the wireless telephone system as part of a wireless telephone call. Preferably, the headset unit includes an FM demodulator for demodulating the FM signal transmitted from the transmitter of the phone unit. Additionally, the headset unit preferably includes a stereo decoder for decoding the commercial radio signal transmitted by the phone unit, when the commercial radio signal is in stereo.
The phone unit may also include a user input device for selecting the commercial radio station that is tuned by the radio receiver. The user input device may also be used to control the frequency at which the transmitter of the phone unit communicates with the headset unit.
The present invention also encompasses the method of making and operating the device described above. For example, the method of the present invention encompasses integrating a commercial radio receiver and a wireless telephone device into a common unit by providing a broadband AM/FM radio signal receiver and a wireless telephone transceiver for communicating with a wireless telephone system within a single unit.